Mosaic Lagoon Lodge — Hotel in Overstrand Local Municipality

It's a beautiful setting but we got the feel that the lodge might be on a downward spiral and could either use a change in management or some capital infusion to make the necessary upgrades to truly provide an exemplary guest experience. ||I did read that there was an ownership change in 2019. I think Mosaic Lagoon Lodge would struggle to get 3 stars at the moment.||Our room:|The back door didn’t lock; the safe didn’t work; the second battery-powered lantern didn’t work; it smelled damp and musty (not like other properties with thatched roofs where we’ve stayed); there were “army worms” everywhere; and the snack biscotti looked like it had been in there for months. It just needed some spit and polish. NOTE: They did fix the backdoor by locking it permanently.||We were in Cabin 5. A miniscule view of the lagoon but mostly the brush. It’s also very loud. We could hear every car/truck/ATV come in and the generator running, as well as every word the employees said in the parking lot. ||The first night/day:|Went to dinner the first night and they had the doors open (no screens) in the dining area. There were swarms of mosquitos inside/outside. We left dinner early it was so miserable. ||The power went out right after dinner but came back on. However, around midnight the power went out until they brought a generator right before breakfast. The room was so hot/humid, and we couldn’t open the windows because there are no screens on any of the windows or doors to keep the mosquitos out. No one ever came to us to apologize and explain what the problem was. The next day they turned off the generator until it was lunch or dinner. A little communication would have gone a long way. NOTE: It does appear that there was some fault in the electrical line serving the lodges in the area.||Activities:|Their activities left a lot to be desired. Each activity is 45 minutes long (if that), then you come back to the lodge and sit. The main guide wasn’t very good at all. Nice enough but very rehearsed. The process for scheduling an activity was very weird. You couldn’t decide anything until that morning or afternoon, you tell the guide what you want to do (he doesn’t offer any options), then he goes and “gets permission” from the manager, he comes back and knocks on your door, and tells you what time you can go (usually within 15 minutes).| |The quad-biking was less than stellar. The bikes (ATVs) looked like they hadn’t been serviced in years. The visors were filthy and hadn’t been cleaned in months. Of course, my ATV wasn’t working right so we had to head back from that early. No apologies, no offers to go back out. ||We knew we were going to have one day of rain and we wanted to go into the town of Hermanus. We tried to get this scheduled the day before. They wouldn’t do it until that morning, and then they acted like it was an Act of Congress to get that done. Our guide that day was Lloyd. He was great! Apparently, we stayed too long in town (past our allotted hour) and the manager was waiting for us at the gate. ||The food/restaurant: |The dinners were amazing. Chef Maria is a star! The cold breakfast was subpar. They put out granola, yogurt and a small fruit plate out that looked like it was meant to serve one person. On one occasion, there wasn’t even anyone in the restaurant lodge to serve breakfast when we came in – sat there for 15-20 minutes. Thank goodness there was hot breakfast too.||Asked for white wine one night, they didn’t have any chilled. Had to wait 15-20 minutes. The snacks they put out during the day in jars: Hard-as-rock marshmallows, hard candy and chocolates in wrappers. ||The manager:|It took her two days to introduce herself to us. Never asked how our stay was going. Got the feeling she didn’t really want to know. Never asked how our stay was when we left. The employees seemed intimidated by her. They have to ask her permission for almost everything. She seemed to manage from her desk in the Curio. Hardly ever saw her out and about (except when she was waiting at the gate). Overall, Mosaic just lacked the polish all around to be positioned as a...

My stay at Mosaic Lodge was a disappointment. Below I will list why: It started off already on a bad note when I was told that the transfer from CPT airport was R1,800 and the price for whale watching was R1,850. Then when I got the invoice the price for transfers was in fact R1,800 per direction so R3,600 in total and they were also charging me R1,500 for transfers to the whale watching. None of this was mentioned before. I complained about the lack of transparency and got a discount for the transfers. I felt bad, because, this was Mosaic's mistake and I believe the driver should be compensated fairly for his work. I gave him generous tips, but I felt tricked into staying at the lodge. At this point I had already booked flights and it was getting late to sort out anything else accommodation-wise and I still held out hope it would be a fun experience. The road was in bad shape due to heavy rains. A car before us was towed out of the mud and I had to wait to be picked up by the lodge. I thought it was a fun adventure, but I can imagine this would be very stressful in your own car. The forest view cabin I was in was full of millipedes crawling around and other insects. I am now afterwards told it was because of all the rain, but no apologies were made at the time, and I feel like it may also be a generic problem as insect repellent was provided in the rooms. The cabin also smelt bad, like blocked drains, which made me heave every time I went in. I understand we are in nature, but then don't advertise yourself as luxury. I specifically requested for vegetarian food before booking and was told it was fine. Yet at every meal I had to remind staff I am vegetarian and for lunch I was given fish and I just didn’t have the energy to complain. The lodge advertises itself based on all the activities it provides. Organisation was poor. The guide and spa staff kept going back and forth giving guests varying and clashing times for activities and spa treatments. It felt like we were an inconvenience. You do not get to pick and choose whatever activity you want. It is determined by what the group wants and the weather. I did quad biking and kayaking which I enjoyed to some extent, but there were no safety instructions provided for either, which I think is irresponsible and dangerous. For kayaking we drove to a neighbouring lodge and borrowed their equipment. We were pushed out into the lagoon by ourselves with no instruction, which for me was fine as I am experienced, but not safe for beginners. Also, I felt so sorry for the other lodge’s bartender who had to wade into the water with his smart trousers and shoes to push me off. Nobody thought of emptying the kayaks of water before we sat down, so we were essentially sat in a puddle of water for an hour and all our clothes were drenched after. I love nature and am used to getting dirty and wet, but there is still a way of doing things in an enjoyable manner and this just felt unprofessional. I was booked on to the whale watching trip organised by a different company. I was told by Mosaic it is a 3-hour boat ride and would finish at 12pm and then I would be taken to the airport directly to make my 5pm flight. However, it was a 2-hour boat trip at 8-10am and I was driven directly to the airport where I had a 4+ hour wait. A waste of time. Furthermore, I was promised a packed breakfast for this morning which I was never given. To be fair, I want to mention some positives: they didn’t charge me a single person rate, the spa treatment was lovely, whale watching was a great experience and I saw whales up close. But I’d recommend booking the whale watching directly with the company in Gansbaai. Sadly none of this compensated for the other negative stuff. The organisation and facilities were definitely not “four-star luxury”. The prices are very expensive for SA. But most of all I am upset because I feel like I have been lied to at many turns and feel like I have been tricked into spending my money. I can not recommend it and I really wish I...

Mosiac lagoon lodge We booked our trip then Covid hit so it’s been 3 years waiting. This was part of a Garden Route experience to show my fiancé my beautiful country as his from the UK, I was born in Cape Town and moved to the UK many years ago. I mentioned we will be celebrating our engagement when I booked and there was no mention of this during our stay, where at two of the previous places they congratulated us and even made a little treat for us, again it’s mentioned in the welcome book but it would have been nice to for that to be noted, one would expect this for a 5 star. The internet password in the guest book is different to the one we were provided with by Richard. The welcome book clearly needs updating it has a loose sheet about tips. The folder also mentions tips but gives you different guidelines. I feel it’s important to mention we have travelled ALLOT and I’ve worked on cruise ships and luxury mega yachts and my standards and expectations are high when it comes to service, for 5 star I expect 5 star. Also we stopped at 3 other 4 star places before checking in at Mosaic. Too some it up it’s attention to detail ,inconsistencies, communication. The welcome book timing for meals are different to what the staff tell you too. The welcome communication could be vastly improved. There was no warning of the long gravel road needed to travel which is just about manageable with a standard car it took 35 min and we had to drive at 15km/h. Most other places sent a sms/ what’s up or email with what to expect on arrival and any considerations such as travel directions, load shedding etc. Location is spectacular, on a bird sanctuary with an abundance of birds, views of the mountains are breathtaking. Welcome was warm and inviting with Richard escorting us to our parking bay with a big smile and greeted us and explained that he would be looking after us for the duration of our stay and that is our home away from for the next 3 nights. Our luggage was taken to our room and we were offered a drink and lunch. Richard delivered lunch to our lodge with a bottle of wine and we took time to soak up the views and explore our lodge & surroundings. Lodge: outstanding, great mosi net, usb plugs, bi fold doors, comfort all round, showers, fan, little touches which I won’t spoil for guests. Everything was rustic, quality and extras well thought out. Bar fridge: well stocked however it we expected it to be replenished everyday, same with the rusks and water. This was rectified after I mentioned it. Food: the first night the pork was overcooked and dry, however the rest of all the meals were absolutely delicious and 6 star, thank you Adrian . A big thank you to Richard as he took note that we love being outside and especially set up our dinner table outside which was appreciated. We had a boat cruise booked early and Richard was very accommodating to have breakfast ready for us early at 6.45am when the usual time is 8-10am and a very well stocked cool box was included for our boat trip. As we booked the boat independently we asked if we could driven and collected due to road conditions and our guide was very accommodating. Excursion: we did the Fynbos quad bike which was fun, it would have been nice to say at the start would you like me to explain a bit about the terrain as we go or do you just want to ride. There was no explanation on how much fynbos or history or wildlife etc. I did read about in the welcome book afterwards, though. We understand load shedding and appreciate the generator but to have placed outside the spa!!! Surely this can be located elsewhere and sound proofing of some sort? Richard made our last night was so memorable with his smile and service, thank you again. We really enjoyed the heated plunge pool, service of drinks to the pool and entire eco-environmental awareness...